UKRAINE WAR BRIEF DAILY DRAFT
For: 2024-06-11
Slava Ukraini! In early 2022 I began a Telegram channel aggregating news from a number of sources daily on the war in Ukraine. Since June 2023 I have provided a daily draft for the Ukraine War Brief Podcast collecting news from over 60 sources daily, much of which forms the basis of the script. While the Podcast is on hiatus I will make this Draft available here both on my own Substack and The People’s Media for those who wish to keep up with events on a daily basis.
ALONG THE CONTACT LINE
GSAFU Morning Report
The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its Operational Information update at 22:00 on June 10 stated that day 842 of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation against Ukraine was about to begin.
During the past day, 81 combat engagements took place. Over the past 24 hours, the enemy carried out 5 missile strikes, 45 air strikes, 486 drone strikes and 2900 shellings across the positions of our troops.
At the same time, Ukrainian soldiers continue to inflict losses in manpower and equipment on the occupying troops, exhausting the enemy along the entire front line and continue to disrupt the plans of Russian occupiers to advance deep into the territory of Ukraine.
Air Force Daily Report
Nothing to report.
The Khortytsia operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the northeastern part of Ukraine. )
Kharkiv axis: There were 4 unsuccessful Russian assaults in the vicinity of Hlyboke and Vovchansk. Ukrainian military continues to take measures to strengthen defence positions and borders.
Kupyansk axis: Russian forces attempted to advance in the vicinity of Synkivka, Stepova Novoselivk, Pischane and Berestove
Lyman axis: Russian forces assaulted Ukrainian defences 12 times in the vicinity of Druzhelyubivka, Nevske, Terny, Torske, Serebryanskyy Forest and Hrigorivka. All attacks were successfully repelled by Ukrainian defenders.
Siversk axis: Russian forces assaulted Ukrainian defences 4 times in the vicinity of Verkhnokamianske, Ivano-Darivka and Sprine. Significant changes has not been experienced.
Kramatorsk axis: Russian forces assaulted Ukrainian defences 7 times in the vicinity of Novyi, Ivanivske, Klischiivka and Andriivka. The situation is intense. Fighting is ongoing in the area of Novyi.
The Tavria operational-strategic group
(Responsible for the central-eastern and southeastern part of Ukraine.)
Pokrovsk axis: The enemy tried 21 times to breach Ukrainian defences near Novooleksandrivka, Yevhenivka, Novopokrovske, Umanske, Yasnobrodívka and Karlivka, all attempts of the enemy to improve their position were unsuccessful.
Kurakhove axis: In this direction the situation remains tense. Russia forces attempted to advance in the vicinity of Nevelske, Krasnogorivka, Heorgiyivka, Konstantinivka and Paraskoviyivka. Measures are being taken to prevent the advancement of Russian troops.
Vremika axis: Russian forces attempted to advance in the vicinity of Staromaiorske and Vodiane all assaults were unsuccessful, Defence forces remain in control of the area.
Orikhiv axis: Russian forces carried out 1 unsuccessful assault in the vicinity of Kopani
The Odesa operational-strategic group
(Responsible for Kherson, Qırım, (also known as Crimea) and the Black Sea.)
Prydniprovsk axis: Russian forces assaulted Ukrainian defences on the left bank of the Dnipro in the vicinity of Krynky 2 times over the previous day, with air support. All attacks were repelled.
TEMPORARILY OCCUPIED TERRITORIES
Russian Commanders in Crimea Recommend Air Defense Personnel to Evacuate Their Families
The Atesh partisan movement reported on its Telegram channel that, as a result of the Defense Forces of Ukraine conducting a series of successful strikes against Russian surface-to-air missile systems in temporarily occupied Crimea. Russian air defence units have received "recommendations" from commanders to evacuate families to military towns in the Southern Military District located in the Russian federation.
"This scenario coincides with the relocation of air defence systems to Belgorod Oblast, which poses a security threat to Crimea, leaving it without the necessary coverage," Atesh noted.
Since the Defense Forces of Ukraine received more ATACMS ballistic missiles, Russian SAM systems in temporarily occupied Crimea find it much harder to perform their missions.
For instance, on June 10, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported about damage of three of russian air defense systems. Radars and ammunition depots were damaged as well.
Atesh also noted that russian occupation troops plan to create new mobile air defense groups with ZU-23-3 twin-barreled autocannon to destroy UAVs.
THE HOME FRONT
Ukraine wants to restore energy facilities damaged by Russia by winter with allied help
Where possible, Ukraine could restore energy facilities damaged by Russia before winter with the help of its allies, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin on June 11. The Kyiv Independent reports.
Speaking at the event, Zelenskyy stressed the need for air defences to protect the country from Russian strikes and restore the power system.
Berlin will send its third Patriot air defence system, as well as IRIS-T and Gepard anti-aircraft systems, missiles, and ammunition, to Ukraine in the coming weeks and months, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said at the conference.
Russian missile and drone attacks have reportedly destroyed 9 gigawatts (GW) of Ukraine's capacity.
The peak energy consumption last winter was 18 GW, and "half of that is gone now," Zelenskyy noted.
"Eighty percent of thermal generation in Ukraine, and one-third of hydroelectric generation, have been destroyed by (Russian President Vladimir) Putin. And this is not the limit of his terror," Zelenskyy said.
"We are asking you for equipment from your decommissioned power plants and direct financial support. This will allow us to respond to the situation here and now. To preserve normal life."
According to Zelenskyy, Kyiv plans to sign hundreds of agreements worth billions of euros with partners in the defense and energy sectors.
Rheinmetall and Ukroboronprom Open Maintenance and Repair Center in Ukraine.
The Rheinmetall Ukrainian Defense Industry LLC maintenance and repair centre opened in the west of Ukraine on June 10 Defense Express reports.
Rheinmetall, in partnership with Ukroboronprom, has launched the first facility dedicated to the repair and production of armored vehicles. This development was reported by the Ministry of Strategic Industries of Ukraine on Tuesday, June 11.
The Rheinmetall Ukrainian Defense Industry LLC maintenance and repair centre’s primary objective is to repair and manufacture military equipment based on German models.
According to the ministry’s statement, “This initiative will expedite the restoration of combat vehicles, enabling their swift return to the front lines, and eventually facilitate the production of new equipment for the Armed Forces of Ukraine by Ukrainian arms manufacturers.”
Currently, the Marder infantry fighting vehicles are being serviced at the centre, with future plans to include the Leopard 1 and Leopard 2 tanks and other German-made systems at additional locations in Ukraine.
The joint production site will be staffed by Ukrainian specialists, with technical oversight provided by German representatives. Rheinmetall’s CEO Armin Papperger emphasised the importance of this collaboration, stating, “It is crucial for us to provide Ukraine with effective and reliable support.”
Kharkiv mayor says striking Russia has helped to calm embattled city
Ukraine's army has struck missile launch positions in Russia, helping to reduce the number of attacks on the embattled city of Kharkiv, its mayor told Reuters on Tuesday.
His comments came after U.S. President Joe Biden late last month approved the use of American weapons to strike targets inside Russia that were being used to attack Kharkiv, Ukraine's second city located close to the Russian border.
While missile and drone strikes continue, Ihor Terekhov said the change had helped bring relative "calm".
"This has helped," Terekhov said in an interview in Berlin, when asked whether the ability to strike inside Russia had alleviated the situation following weeks of heavy bombardment.
"That is why maybe Kharkiv has ... this period of ... calm the last couple of weeks ... that there were no great strikes as it was, for example, in May." He was speaking through a translator.
The mayor said that about 11,500 people had arrived in Kharkiv city from regions that were being actively bombarded.
Terekhov also stressed the need for Western air defences to help protect his city.
Ukraine has struggled to intercept incoming Russian drones and missiles because of the lack of systems to shoot them down. Kyiv's allies are scrambling to find more, but deliveries have been held up by political wrangling in Washington and the lack of availability of suitable weapons.
"It is very important to have the weapons on time. It is very important to have these weapons, especially the multi-defence air system."
RUSSIAN WORLD
Nothing to report.
NEWS WORLDWIDE
US needs Japan's help to boost military production, ambassador says
The United States needs Japan's help to cope with strategic challenges in Europe and Asia that are straining its defence industries, Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan said on Monday as the countries kicked off talks on military industrial cooperation. Voice of America reports.
"Our national security strategy calls for us to be able to handle one and a half theatres, that's a major war and another one to a stand-off, and with both the Middle East, Ukraine, and keeping our deterrence credible in this region (East Asia) you can already see that we are in two plus," Rahm Emanuel told reporters.
Discussions on Tuesday between U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment William A. LaPlante and Masaki Fukasawa, the head of Japan’s Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics Agency, will focus on naval repairs in Japan that could help free up U.S. yards to build more warships.
Other potential cooperation between Japan and the U.S. includes aircraft repairs, missile production and military supply chain resilience, he added.
Japan and the U.S. already build a missile defence interceptor together and Tokyo has also agreed to supply Patriot PAC3 air-defence missiles to the U.S.
Zelenskyy - It's time for allies to give Ukraine all arms needed to defeat Russia
The time has come for Kyiv's partners to provide all the weapons necessary to push Russia out of Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said during the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin on June 11. The Kyiv Independent reports.
"If you're asking me whether the time has come for the partners to give us all the arms needed to throw Russia out, then yes, the time has come," Zelenskyy said in a response to a journalist's question.
Speaking at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz after bilateral talks, Zelenskyy thanked Berlin for all the support it has provided to Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression.
Responding to a journalist's question, Scholz said that Berlin currently has no plans to back the proposal by French President Emmanuel Macron's proposal to send military instructors to Ukraine.
Scholz added that Germany continues to train Ukrainian soldiers on German territory, and "nothing changes there."
EU to make EUR 1.5 bln in taxes on income from Russian assets available to Ukraine in July
The first EUR 1.5 billion of proceeds from frozen Russian assets will be transferred to Ukraine as early as July, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin on Tuesday. Interfax Ukraine reports.
"About EUR 1.5 billion of windfall revenue will be available as early as July - 90% of them will go to defence, 10% to restoration," she said.
The President of the European Commission also said that this week at the G7 summit they would discuss how Ukraine could get more benefit from frozen Russian assets even faster.
At the same time, she stated that the EU has made it possible to use windfall proceeds from frozen Russian assets “in accordance with international law.”
US lifts ban on supply of weapons for Azov brigade
The Biden administration will finally allow a Ukrainian military unit with a checkered past to use U.S. weaponry, the State Department said Monday, having lifted a ban imposed years ago amid concerns in Washington about the group’s origins. The Washington Post reports.
The Azov Brigade, known for its tenacious but ultimately unsuccessful defense of the Azovstal steel mill in Mariupol early in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, is regarded as a particularly effective fighting force. But it was barred about a decade ago from using American arms because U.S. officials determined that some of its founders espoused racist, xenophobic and ultranationalist views, and U.N. human rights officials accused the group of humanitarian violations.
Now the brigade, a one-time volunteer militia absorbed into the Ukrainian National Guard in 2015, will have access to the same U.S. military assistance as any other unit. The policy shift was disclosed as Kyiv starts the summer fighting season and faces down a Russian military that has intensified its pressure on objectives in eastern Ukraine and the country’s energy infrastructure.
“After thorough review, Ukraine’s 12th Special Forces Azov Brigade passed Leahy vetting as carried out by the U.S. Department of State,” the agency said in a statement, referring to the “Leahy Law” that prevents U.S. military assistance from going to foreign units credibly found to have committed major human rights violations. It is named for former senator Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.), who wrote the legislation.
The State Department found “no evidence” of such violations, its statement says.
Cancelling the ban had been a top priority for Ukrainian officials, who say the brigade could have been more effective during its defence of Azovstal in 2022 if it had access to U.S. equipment. Members of the brigade also have been barred from attending training organised by the U.S. military.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has long cited racist and ultranationalist elements of the Azov Battalion as an element of his accusation that Ukrainian fighters and their rulers in Kyiv are neo-Nazis. The shift in U.S. policy is likely to reignite those Russian critiques.
MILITARY & TECH
Ukrainian Su-25s now armed with French Hammer glide bombs
Ukraine has successfully adapted its Su-25 attack aircraft to deploy the advanced French AASM HAMMER precision-guided bombs, enhancing their capability to strike Russian forces with greater accuracy and effectiveness.
This development was reported by the defence publication Militarnyi, citing a statement from Colonel Serhiy Holubtsov, the head of aviation for the Ukrainian Air Force Command.
At the beginning of the war these aircraft were armed from stockpiles of soviet era weapons which became rapidly depleted and harder and harder to replace. The Su-25 was then adapted to fire the US Zuni unguided rocket.
“Our Su-25 aircraft have been modernised and can now deploy bombs equipped with rocket engines. These are called HAMMER bombs, and we are using them very successfully,” Colonel Holubtsov stated. He highlighted the importance of these upgrades given the depletion of Ukraine’s stockpile of unguided aerial munitions in the first year of intense combat operations.
Grumpy here - this development can help make the Su-25, which is very much a blunt weapon of the soviet area usually armed with dumb bombs and unguided rockets into a more potent weapon on the battlefield, allowing for precision guidance at a distance The Hammer’s “publicly stated” range and accuracy is 70 km and 10m.
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